In the beverage industry, it’s all about standing out, which is why taking the time to develop a marketing strategy that resonates with your audience is the first step to a gaining competitive edge. Beverage marketing is much more than creating print ads and hosting events - today’s consumers want to shop from brands that hold the same values and beliefs as they do.
Take some tips from a few of the brands that spiced up their beverage marketing strategy in these three unique ways.
1. Branded Storytelling
The beverage industry is filled with a multitude of energy drinks, teas, smoothies, and more, but what makes your brand any different? Prior to trying to sell a new product, you need to focus on your branding. Even though they say not to judge a book by its cover, its often a beverage's branding that sells it the first time, not its flavor.
Organic Valley Tells a Story
Considered your customer when creating your brand story. What is your purpose? How are you benefiting them? Creating a story that will resonate with your target audience makes your brand come to life.
Organic Valley does a great job at making their story witty and intriguing for busy women in the “Real Morning Report.” Although this is a marketing strategy, it still comes across as authentic because the story being told is so relatable - how many women do you know who have time to eat in the morning?
Real Morning Report by Organic Valley
Guinness Engages Millenials With Experiential Marketing
Create a closer bond with customers by letting them experience your brand’s story. Immerse them in a fun and memorable experience that they can’t get from another brand event.
Guinness brought to life their belief that “no one should settle for the ordinary” during a brief event in which customers could win a prize with the purchase of a Guinness beer. Ambassadors acknowledged millennials want memorable experiences rather than tangible prizes, and offered prizes ranging to a trip to Dublin via private jet.
Guinness Class by Guinness
2. Social Media
If your brand is not already utilizing social media networks, now is that time to start. Social media is the perfect place to engage with your customers on an individual level - sharing content across platforms will reach various types of customers in different ways.
Jagermeister Tears up Twitter
Here is how Jagermeister uses Twitter to regularly post relevant internet topics, from hashtags to memes even competitions. Responding to mentions and comments keeps Jagermeister in constant interaction with target customers from individual markets.
3. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is a rising strategy that utilizes key leaders to drive your brand’s message. An average of 70% of people trust brand or product recommendations from someone they trust, according to Mashable.
PepsiCo. Inspires Influencers With Hashtags
Here is a good example from PepsiCo. The company introduced the #SayItWithPepsi campaign to encourage millennials to purchase Pepsi. By incorporating highly influential creators and asking them to share content featuring the redesigned beverage - Pepsi gained over 46 million impressions that would have cost them 5x as much without the use of influencer marketing, according to Shorty Awards.
Developing a beverage marketing strategy does not need to be as hard as it seems. If you are dropping a new product or looking to revamp your brand, think about incorporating these 3 techniques into your beverage marketing strategy.
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